Union leader speaks on proposed Nicaraguan Interoceanic Canal

NSCAG News |
on: Thursday, 24 August 2017

Domingo Perez, General Secretary, UNE

On 21st August, Tortilla con Sal interviewed Domingo Perez, General Secretary of public sector union UNE, about the proposed Interoceanic Canal. During the wide ranging interview, Domingo spoke about the importance of the proposed Canal to the labour movement in Nicaragua as follows:-

'In the first place, from the point of view of the labour unions, this new Great Interoceanic Canal project is a big opportunity for people in Nicaragua. We’re talking about generating employment. We’re looking at direct and indirect employment, because the Canal will absorb approximately between 500,000 and 600.000 from the large number of unemployed and sub-employed that we have now. The era of the neoliberal governments left us with an accumulated total of 1.7 million unemployed. This current government has steadily reduced that level of unemployment via its social and economic policies. So the mega project of the Great Canal Canal will in fact help us reduce by between 500,000 and 600,000 the number of unemployed and sub-employed people still left over from the years of the neoliberal governments. From the point of vew of the labour unions, the Canal is very important because it will promote the generation of employment'.

He went on to say 'Our country was impoverished. We were made impoverished by big capital and we have this chance now with the Canal to really develop our economy'